Increase your God-Focus by Expressing Joy

There are days when you don't feel happy.  Your circumstances could be excellent; good things could be happening left and right.  And your emotions reveal your discontent.  Perhaps you plaster on a smile and push through, believing you can "fake it till you make it."  There are days you just muddle through, tucking yourself into bed early with a quick prayer that tomorrow will be better.  Some of us experience days when we cry over sappy commercials, quietly thankful for a release to pent-up fears, frustrations and feelings of failure.

Always Happy?

I have some weird Christian ideal that tells me I'm supposed to always be happy.  After all I have Jesus, right?  When I read David's Psalm of Thanksgiving in 1 Chronicles 16, I butt up against this big expectation. In the span of 28 verses, David refers to praising or expressing joy at least 12 times! The positivity wired into my personality steps forward and declares, "See? You're supposed to be happy!" Thankfully, God's Spirit speaks balanced truth to my soul.

David's Psalm of Thanksgiving gives us tools for our toolbox to live focused on God. These tools help us pursue the wonder that God is in our midst.  David is celebrating the return of the Ark of the Covenant to Jerusalem. The Ark was the representation of the presence of God to the Israelites. David's repetition of expressing joy is a fantastic tool to keep our hearts and minds centered on Christ and His presence with us. 

Joy vs. Happiness

Joy does not equal happiness.  My Pastor husband has defined joy in many sermons as a "deep settled confidence that a loving Heavenly Father is in control of all the details of my life."* Joy is this mixture of peace, contentment and gratitude that runs so deep, and is so strong, that it is expressed periodically with exuberance.

The Tools for our Toolbox

In 1 Chronicles 16:8-36, I find three different ideas that can keep us settled in that confidence.

1. We get to seek God.  Verse 10 says, "Let the hearts of those who seek the Lord rejoice." (CSB) The NLT uses the word worship instead of seek.  Think about that connection.  When I seek God, I am led to worship and when I worship God, I am led to seek Him.  It's a privilege to be able to know the creator, the King of kings and the Lord of lords.  Seeking Him and knowing Him strengthens the confidence I have in Him. 
2. Remember how God has moved on your behalf.  In his Psalm (verses 15-22) David recounts ways God had been faithful to the Israelites.  When we recall how God has shown up in our lives, we remind our hearts that He is in control of the details.  We open the door to gratitude and peace, because we've battled our fears with the faithfulness of God.
3. Worship God; live a life of reverence.  Our minds are wired in such a way that what we dwell on affects our emotions.  When we think negative thoughts we begin to filter what we see and experience through a pessimistic point of view.  Soon we feel depressed, believing life is the pits.  The opposite is also true with positive thoughts.  David didn't have the science to back up his process, he just recognized that God is worthy of our praise.  David tells the people to sing praise (v9), declare God's glory (v24), ascribe to the Lord glory and strength (v28), ascribe to the Lord the glory of his name (v29), and worship the Lord in the splendor of his holiness (v29).  Malachi 2:5 says, "My covenant with [Levi] was one of life and peace, and I gave these to him; it called for reverence, and he revered me and stood in awe of my name." Levi received the peace that is anchored in joy because he revered God.  David challenges us to live into that same covenantal concept.

I think it's key that David shepherds us toward action.  He isn't challenging us to "Just think positively!" or beef up our attitude.  David's Psalm of Thanksgiving encourages us to actively engage in our relationship with God and then express what we experience.  That movement creates conviction, it deepens and settles the confidence we have in our God, who is wondrously in our midst.

*Note: my Pastor husband says the quote is not original with him.  He read the idea 30 plus years ago and he has made it his own.  He would be happy to offer appropriate credit if he could remember/discover the original authorship!

Joy photo by Preslie Hirsch on Unsplash